McGuinness accused of lying over his IRA role

The son of an Irish Republican Army victim confronted former IRA commander Martin McGuinness on the campaign trail yesterday, accusing the Irish presidential candidate of being a liar and shielding the killers.

As Mr McGuinness campaigned in Athlone, he found his way blocked by David Kelly, who held a framed portrait of his father, Patrick. In December 1983, the IRA killed Patrick Kelly, 35, a private in the Irish army, and a policeman as security forces tried to arrest an IRA gang.

“I believe that you know the names of the killers of my father. And I want you to tell me who they are,” Mr Kelly said to Mr McGuinness.

Mr McGuinness denied knowing the IRA members involved, but Mr Kelly said he must know since he was a senior IRA figure.

“That’s not true,” said Mr McGuinness, who during the campaign has insisted he quit the IRA in 1974, the year of his last prison conviction for IRA membership. However, several authoritative histories of the IRA and Irish police and government say Mr McGuinness was an IRA commander until the group disarmed in 2005.

Mr Kelly said his father “was loyal to this Irish Republic, I’m loyal to him as a son, and I’m going to get justice for him.”

He said to Mr McGuinness: “I want you to get your comrades who committed this crime to hand themselves in.”

When Mr McGuinness said he couldn’t help him, Mr Kelly said Ireland couldn’t experience true reconciliation until people involved in past politically motivated killing told the truth.

Mr McGuinness said he wanted Ireland to form “an international, independent commission on truth”, but to applause in the Athlone shopping centre Mr Kelly said: “I want truth now, today. Murder is murder.”